Hi, my name is Cora. I am a beginner designer and have a few patterns published at Cora Shaw on Ravelry (http://www.ravelry.com/designers/cora-shaw). I am married to a wonderful man. We are owned by 3 cats (Patches, Snowball & Pumpkin) as well as 3 dogs (Molly, Leo and Bear). I am dealing with End Stage Renal Failure and currently on dialysis.

Anything Knitted and Crocheted

Welcome to my blog. I hope to blog about my knitting and crocheting as well as everyday life. The patterns that I post are original and as such there is copyright on them. When they are based on another pattern there is a link to the pattern.

My husband and I adopted a beautiful dog named Leo. He is a dachshund and absolutely adorable!we adopted him on June 23, 2010 and he has become the love of our lives.

I love to share patterns that I find along the way or to talk about some of the neatest designers that are out there today, so I love to post links to the designs or the designers.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

An Update about Pickton...BC court rejects Picton's Appeal

William Pickton, seen here in a 2002 photo, was charged with killing 26 Vancouver-area women, aged 20 to 46June 25, 2009

PETTI FONGWESTERN CANADA BUREAU

Vancouver–One of the costliest and lengthiest murder trials in B.C. history involving convicted serial killer Robert Pickton will not be reopened after the province's highest courts this morning found there was not enough evidence to order a new trial.

Pickton, the Port Coquitlam pig farmer who was convicted in December 2007 on six counts of second degree murder, is serving a minimum of 25 years in prison before parole.

He had originally been charged with 26 counts of first-degree murder but 20 of those counts were severed and Pickton went on trial before a judge and jury on the deaths of Sereena Abotsway, Mona Wilson, Andrea Joesbury, Brenda Wolfe, Georgina Papin and Marnie Frey.

Pickton's victims were women with drug addictions working in the sex trade in the Downtown Eastside when they disappeared over a period of five years.

The Court of Appeal in B.C. heard two connected appeals related to the year long trial which began January 2007 and concluded with a conviction after a 10 day jury deliberation in December of that year.

Pickton's lawyers appealed the decision saying chiefly the B.C. Supreme Court judge erred in his instruction to the jury after they returned during their deliberations in day six with a question about how to proceed if they were uncertain whether Pickton acted alone.

The crown appealed as well to the Court of Appeal saying that the lower courts should not have severed only six of the 26 counts on the indictment and errors in law by the trial judge about the relevance of planning the murders.

B.C.'s criminal justice branch which oversees crown prosecutors has said that it will not proceed with the other 20 counts of first-degree murder against Pickton because he is already serving the maximum amount of time in prison before eligibility for parole. However the crown said it was prepared to re-try on all 26 counts of first degree murder if a new trial was ordered.

There is a possibility now that the case will go to the Supreme Court of Canada.

By a two-to-one decision, the top justices in B.C. turned down Pickton's appeal for a new trial. But because Justice Ian Donald said he would order a new trial in a dissenting opinion, Pickton's lawyers have the right to appeal to the country's highest court.

Donald wrote that despite the body of evidence against Pickton, the jury deliberated over nine days and reached the "somewhat curious result of second degree murder."

"While it is impossible to know with certainty what was behind the lengthy deliberations and the acquittal on first degree murder, the lack of a full development of a party liability in the charge cannot be dismissed as a cause," wrote Donald.

Donald suggested that there was a possibility that the verdict reached by the jury was so misguided that it was the product of a compromise reached out of puzzlement or frustration.

Cynthia Cardinale, the sister of Georgina Papin, one of Pickton's victims, said before the decision was rendered that the family was anxious to hear the results.

"We don't know how to feel at this point. This seems to never end and we continually have to think about this," she told the Toronto Star in an interview.

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Stevie Cameron's Books on Robert "Willie" Pickton

The was her first book called the Pickton File. It was released June 3, 2007.
This is the newest book called "On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the Tragic Story of Vancouver's Missing Women". This books delves more into who Pickton was and how he came to be the monster that he is. Should be interesting....

Knitters Without Borders

Edmonton, Alberta Local Yarn Stores

The “Proselytize Knitting” Badge

The “Proselytize Knitting” Badge - A requirement for all Knitting Scouts, the recipient must do his or her bit to present knitting in a positive light, whilst at the same time avoiding all references to “hipness”, grandmothers, and yoga.

I’m always doing my part in this arena whether it’s spoken or written like in this blog. I teach at my local community league, which was a fluke. I am involved in the Alberta Avenue Initiative and was asked to teach both knitting and crochet. I start with dishcloths as it gives the basics.

The “MacGyver” Badge (Level One) - The recipient must demonstrate clever use of a non-knitting tool in a knitting-related scenario. For instance, recipient has used paper clips as stitch markers, or successfully whittled and then utilized bamboo skewers as dpns.

I’ve used all kinds of things as stitch markers when none were available, and have found clever ways of knitting cables without cable needles using skewers.

Knit a Condom Amulet Project

Early In 2005, the general public began to hear about the crisis in HIV among women over 50. Here I am in September 2007, more than two years later, wearing one of my provocative Condom Amulets, enjoying the 69th birthday party for my friend, Bethene (her blog). Perfect setting for my art-in-the-public-interest campaign for Safe Sex. Thirty-five women there--all over 50.

Free Pattern Sites-Knit

Island of Misfit Patterns

Bag-A-Holic Button

I have become a Bag-A-Holic. I can't seem to get enough of bags, whether felted, or not. I love to learn new techniques. At the bag-A-Holics yahoo group we get to learn amazing techniques while learning how to put together bags. Come join in the fun!!